Posts made by drgnslayr

I’m a monster Frank fan… but wow… Dot far exceeds Frank as a freshman. Not even close. We have to consider that Frank wasn’t a natural PG. Frank came to Lawrence as a volume scorer shooting guard. Remember how he struggled to adjust?

It’s so refreshing that Dot came to us already as a solid PG. I mentioned this early… I can’t recall a better freshman PG EVER at Kansas!

What I’m wondering… will his smaller size keep him in college for 4 years? Right now, I think we can keep him through his junior year. Of course, it always matters how we do in the NCAA tourney. When we go far it helps all our guys get more league attention.

I feel bad for Wade. He’s an awesome guy. Foot injuries usually require a full year to heal. There are 28 bones, 33 joints and more than 100 tendons in each foot… don’t forget ligaments, blood vessels and nerves. It is impossible for doctors to locate all stress fractures when it comes to feet. It is unlikely Wade will be effective from here on out. I do see him returning, but the chances he has more trouble is probable. Add on top of that the Diarra loss.

I still see our biggest threat being TT. We get past them and it should be a downhill ride from there, though we will have to be on our game from here on out!

I’m not going to come on here and blast Vick. I have the feeling he’s been dealt some bad cards and he’s trying to figure out a way forward. But I will say what looks like the obvious, this is now a better team without him!

It may have just been a team identity issue. I’m sure this was a huge part of it. This was supposed to be Vick’s team. He was reformed and the senior that came out hot early on. When he fizzled and when he showed signs of trouble, we were suddenly without leadership. There was chaos on this team.

This is like a completely different team now! Devon is seating himself in a higher leadership role, but also… the entire team feels an obligation to contribute to leadership. That’s creates a deadly problem for our opponents. If they focus on stopping Dedric, someone else will rise up for a big game.

We severely need Marcus back and at full speed! I’m guessing he is still 2 to 3 weeks away from being about 95%. He’s going to have to learn how to play through pain now.

I don’t know what it is going to take to get Q to play better. He hasn’t adjusted to the speed of D1. He remains well-spirited and he’s a great kid. It doesn’t appear that it is a situation where he is just over-thinking the game. I just don’t think he has made the leap to D1 smoothly and he may need another year or two. Meanwhile… it is crucial that he find enough improvement to reduce many of his TOs. He also needs considerable defensive work. Most of the teams in the B12 know he’s the man to attack on defense and I’m seeing them run iso’s at him.

I did mention early on that KJ would be a guy that will win us some games this year and he has proven me correct. He’s not done winning us games either!

Agbaji… his poise and energy are just what the doctor ordered for this young team! He is definitely another leader and not afraid to do it. What a find he was!

We can definitely expect a lot more production from Lightfoot. He now sees his role on this team (crystal clear) and he will be there for us, 100%!

Everyone is onboard! The energy has never been this positive this year and all we should see now is constant improvement, almost daily.

The maturity of this team is happening before our eyes. We are coming on big, and lucky for that because we really need to win out to guarantee #15!

I think Vick has always had off-court tough things to deal with. That has finally reached a point where he needs time at home. It’s a coin flip if he returns, but what we need to do is think positive and support him during this tough time. He’s a Jayhawk, and there is clearly no bad intent here on his part.

Perhaps his absence may help the team regain a bit more focus down the stretch.

We have reached a magic moment when the streak is at stake and the struggle should help toughen up our young guys. I still wouldn’t be surprised if we win out in the league. I recall what happened with the 2012 team without a single McDs AA after TRob’s tragedy.

If we get any kind of leadership moving forward, we still should win our conference.

It’s no surprise to me that we won by such a large margin over TTech on Saturday… after Devonte gave a message to the guys. Our guys need a leader. Plain and simple. Just look how they responded to Devonte stepping in with some leadership language!

This is the time for Dotson to stand up. He can stand up now and save our season. Save the streak. And be well-poised to gain full control of this team next year.

He can start his new role of alpha dog by staying in Vick’s grill to keep him going throughout our remaining games. When a freshman can push a senior… you’ve got your alpha dog and I can see Dotson carrying on the conference torch all four years at Kansas!

This really is the crucial time. Maybe Sherron can contact Devon and build him up on how he owned the purple kitties in Manhattan!

A few things I’ll be watching for is Devon’s play (which he will still be thinking about that WVU loss and his 7 TOs). Also… Dedric’s fouls are a concern because UK will feed the post with hopes to foul him out.

I’m hopeful Q will come ready and show us something. If he doesn’t, then I hope he at least stays away from making huge mistakes.

Pace will be a key. If we get the right pace and we get into a groove, we can win this game. If we don’t, it could get ugly.

Your last paragraph says it all. Enjoy the ride and let’s hope we keep the streak alive!

I’m not attending practices so I can’t really say what’s up with Q. He looks lost out there. I just don’t think the game has slowed down enough for him yet. Not sure how a guy can basically have half a game on the court and not put up any numbers. He seems to be chasing after the game when he should know where the game is and start getting in the middle of it!

I can think of three very obvious things Marcus can do to improve his shooting stats this year without changing his form…

First… he needs confidence! That plays a huge role in bringing up numbers. It only takes the slightest hesitation to kill a shot. Marcus has to realize that just deciding he feels confident will begin improving his shot. If he needs any help with this he should chat with KJ. Man… he’s never afraid to take a shot from anywhere!

Second… he should rethink his focus. Is his vision okay? Maybe worth an eye test. He needs to think more about where he is focusing… back of the rim? An overall vision of the rim? Does he envision a pathway for the ball?

Third… he has to learn to relax on his shot. His arms should feel like spaghetti. Soft stroke. Follow through…

You know I’m a Self fan… but if I see a weakness in his coaching it is his inability to express passion on through his teams. I don’t think there are many coaches that are capable cheerleaders on the sidelines. Jimmy Valvano was always one of my favorites.